Match Report: Northants Combination 1-2 Humber Premier League
Northants Combination welcomed Humber Premier League to the Victoria Mill ground - the home of Wellingborough Whitworths - for an FA Inter-League...
The Combination started brightly with a couple of shots within the first 10 minutes by Andy Seaton and Dale Lewis, but neither efforts really tested the 'keeper. A quick clearance then caught the Combination defence out, resulting in an Alex Bannister shot being parried by Corey McGovern - only for it to fall at the feet of Ryan Whincup who put the visitors 1-0 up.
Dale Lewis had a couple of great chances to put Combination back on level terms, but his shot went over the bar and another went just wide with the Humber ‘keeper coming out quickly to narrow the angle.
A miss-kick by skipper Lee Abrams gave the ball to Humber's Ryan Whincup on the edge of the penalty area, but he was unable to put his team two goals ahead. With the Combination team now showing more urgency and pushing forward, a long ball over the top fell to Humber's Dan Clancy and with the Combination ‘keeper Corey McGovern off his line, he produced a fantastic flick over the ‘keeper’s head into the top right hand corner of the net, making it 2-0 to the visitors.
Both sides had further chances to score, but the half finished with the Humber Premier League leading two goals to nil.
The second half started with the Combination team putting pressure on the Humber's defence. This resulted in what turned out to be the key moments in the match. The Combination were awarded a penalty, however, Iain Blaikie saw his kick parried back into play by the ‘keeper. The ball then rebounded towards the edge of the penalty area, only for an immediate second penalty to be awarded for another missed timed tackle by a Humber player. This time Dale Lewis stepped up but his kick sailed over the crossbar.
Manager Simon Broadbent introduced his first substitution with Iain Blaikie being replaced by a fresh Sam Cooper and within minutes a scrappy cross into the Humber penalty area saw Andy Seaton smash the ball into in the bottom left hand corner of the net.
With 20 minutes to go the game opened up, with Combination pushing forward and making chances. Humber still looked dangerous on the break, but the last few minutes were played out without further score.
The FA Inter-League Cup is limited to leagues at Step 7 of the National League system and other leagues as decided by The FA. This is the sixth time this competition has taken place and the Northants Combination has entered on each occasion. There are 32 leagues in the competition this time, with the winners going forward to represent England in the UEFA Regions Cup. Last year this was played in Bucharest, with the West Yorkshire League representing England.
Final Score: Northants Combination 1 Humber Premier 2
Squads
Combination Team: Cory McGovern, Lee Abrams (Capt), Tom Horn, Ben Booker, Ben Davis, Chris Griffin(C), Kasey Morgan, Mark Faulkner (C), Andy Seaton, Dale Lewis (C), Iain Blaikie
Subs: Sam Cooper on for Iain Blaikie (60), Craig Cooper on for Ben Davis (76), Luke McDonald on for Chris Griffin (70).
Subs Not Used: Harry Munday, Ben Clarke
During the post-match refreshment the two leagues exchanged mementos in recognition of the occasion and Humber's Dan Clancy was presented with the Man of the Match award.
Our thanks go to Wellingborough Whitworths FC for hosting the match and for the provision of food for both teams, match and league officials.
Dale Lewis had a couple of great chances to put Combination back on level terms, but his shot went over the bar and another went just wide with the Humber ‘keeper coming out quickly to narrow the angle.
A miss-kick by skipper Lee Abrams gave the ball to Humber's Ryan Whincup on the edge of the penalty area, but he was unable to put his team two goals ahead. With the Combination team now showing more urgency and pushing forward, a long ball over the top fell to Humber's Dan Clancy and with the Combination ‘keeper Corey McGovern off his line, he produced a fantastic flick over the ‘keeper’s head into the top right hand corner of the net, making it 2-0 to the visitors.
Both sides had further chances to score, but the half finished with the Humber Premier League leading two goals to nil.
The second half started with the Combination team putting pressure on the Humber's defence. This resulted in what turned out to be the key moments in the match. The Combination were awarded a penalty, however, Iain Blaikie saw his kick parried back into play by the ‘keeper. The ball then rebounded towards the edge of the penalty area, only for an immediate second penalty to be awarded for another missed timed tackle by a Humber player. This time Dale Lewis stepped up but his kick sailed over the crossbar.
Manager Simon Broadbent introduced his first substitution with Iain Blaikie being replaced by a fresh Sam Cooper and within minutes a scrappy cross into the Humber penalty area saw Andy Seaton smash the ball into in the bottom left hand corner of the net.
With 20 minutes to go the game opened up, with Combination pushing forward and making chances. Humber still looked dangerous on the break, but the last few minutes were played out without further score.
The FA Inter-League Cup is limited to leagues at Step 7 of the National League system and other leagues as decided by The FA. This is the sixth time this competition has taken place and the Northants Combination has entered on each occasion. There are 32 leagues in the competition this time, with the winners going forward to represent England in the UEFA Regions Cup. Last year this was played in Bucharest, with the West Yorkshire League representing England.
Final Score: Northants Combination 1 Humber Premier 2
Squads
Combination Team: Cory McGovern, Lee Abrams (Capt), Tom Horn, Ben Booker, Ben Davis, Chris Griffin(C), Kasey Morgan, Mark Faulkner (C), Andy Seaton, Dale Lewis (C), Iain Blaikie
Subs: Sam Cooper on for Iain Blaikie (60), Craig Cooper on for Ben Davis (76), Luke McDonald on for Chris Griffin (70).
Subs Not Used: Harry Munday, Ben Clarke
During the post-match refreshment the two leagues exchanged mementos in recognition of the occasion and Humber's Dan Clancy was presented with the Man of the Match award.
Our thanks go to Wellingborough Whitworths FC for hosting the match and for the provision of food for both teams, match and league officials.